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  1. #1
    BPnet Veteran frankykeno's Avatar
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    Need Advice re elderly cat

    Okay guys I know this is a snake forum but so many of you have other pets I'm hoping for some advice or maybe just a place to vent.

    Barney our 16 yrs+ neutered male cat is becoming vicious and I'm not sure what to do or if anything can be done. He's always been a bit moody but over the last couple of months he's becoming suddenly vicious around anyone eating. Attempting to claw the food from them and attempting to bite. He doesn't have very sharp teeth anymore but is fully clawed and on a big male like him those claws are impressive. I trim them back but he is still able to leave marks on the kids and is scaring our 4 year old. Other than when someone is eating he seems his old self. It doesn't seem to matter what the food is...he'll try this over a banana for heavens sake.

    I've tried feeding him more often so he can't feel hungry but that doesn't seem to do a bit of good and he throws up if I feed him too much. He used to have dry kitty kibble to munch on thru the day but as he's aged he will only eat canned food (I think it's from teeth wearing out with age).

    So we have to put Barney in a room everytime someone eats anything, which is not fun and he yowls like mad (driving everyone nuts here). Our other cat got a bit like this when she was 17 years old, but she just seemed to forget she'd been fed and would give a "food cry" but not become aggressive like this.

    Like I said I don't know if there's anything to be done but I'm open to suggestions. We know Barney's time is short due to his age. I've prepared the kids (as I did when Puss Puss turned 16) to accept that old cats get suddenly ill and you do what you must but Barney's not ill, he's just seeming to lose his mind over food of any sort. I hate to put him down over this but am I doing the wrong thing to keep him going when he is acting this way. If we didn't have such a little child in the house I'd be less concerned I guess and just manage it.

    Sorry for the super long post but I'm just lost as to what the right decision is for the family and for Barney. I don't want this wonderful old cat to spend his last years being shoved away in a bedroom everytime someone wants a snack in this house but darn it all, I hate putting any animal down for what amounts to a behaviour problem!
    ~~Joanna~~

  2. #2
    Registered User Kiran's Avatar
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    Re: Need Advice re elderly cat

    First off let me say that I'm sorry to hear that about your cat. I have one myself and like every other animal they just become one of the family. I had originally thought that maybe you could have him declawed but due to his age a vet may be reluctant to do that and it would probably just stress your cat out even more. My only other suggestion (and I'm sure you've thought of this) is to call your vet and ask. There may be a medication out there that can help. Hope things work out for you!
    Kiran
    "The Pit!....Bring me my pendulum kiddies...I feel like swingin'".... - V. Price

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  3. #3
    BPnet Veteran SatanicIntention's Avatar
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    Re: Need Advice re elderly cat

    Poor ol' man. Sounds like he's getting a bit senile. Kitty Alzheimer's? Is he losing weight at all? What kind of food is he eating? Our cat Lacey, who died at the ripe old age of 22, was very particular about her canned food. She never got senile though. If he's losing weight, you could always get some Hills a/d from the vet. It's a high calorie, very dense food.

    I don't know about getting a sedative or something from the vet. I wouldn't want my cat doped up for the rest of his life. And declawing just hurts, doesn't matter what age. It's just not nice. Try having the ends of your toes cut off and then have to walk on them. Owie.

    I would just talk to the vet and explain the situation, and see what he can offer you. It may be a sedative, it may be a supplement for his food, it may just be having to distract him while people are eating(ie: hiding treats so he will have something to do). Hope you get it figured out. I really don't want your kids getting hurt either. Cat scratches hurt
    --Becky--
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  4. #4
    BPnet Veteran frankykeno's Avatar
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    Re: Need Advice re elderly cat

    Good advice and thanks. I'm going to call the vet next week I think and have a chat.

    It's funny as I'm the first to say no one should have a free roaming animal in their home that's not absolutely trustworthy around their kids, but I do feel this is in large part due to Barney's age. He is at least 16 but could be a year or two older even. For now I'm going to keep blunting his nails back and keeping him in eyesight whenever our 4 year old interacts with him, food or not present.

    He's not losing weight other than he usually does. He's a big rangy sort of cat so has always been on the slight side (as well I don't like to see cats fat as it's so incredibly unhealthy for them) and goes up and down on his weight easily and quickly.

    Thanks for the advice and good thoughts. I know there's not much to do about the poor old fella, just needed to vent a bit.
    ~~Joanna~~

  5. #5
    BPnet Veteran SatanicIntention's Avatar
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    Re: Need Advice re elderly cat

    Venting is good. It usually makes me feel ALOT better. What about those rubber tips you can put on the cat's claws? If he'll let you clip his nails, then it's worth a shot. Those will help add to the safety of your 4-year old. You can find them at PetsMart/Petco, and they have different colors/sizes. It'd be nice if they made them for teefers too

    Glad he's not losing weight. Our cat always weighed around 6-7lbs, even when she was in her younger years. She just kept her figure.

    I agree with you. We have a dog, Spice, that I can't trust as far as I could throw her. I have wanted to put her to sleep for quite awhile since she has alot of issues. I don't know why they even bred her mother. She was aggressive as well, and many times tried to attack the owner's sons/daughters. Spice is almost the same. She hates men and some women, is very aggressive towards our other dog, Sugar, and has, on many occasions, attacked her. My parents don't reprimand her for any of it, the growling, the snapping at Sugar, anything... We can't take her anywhere, and it's just sad. I just wish people would stop breeding dogs that have such problems.

    Ok, that was my rant, sorry to take over your thread See, we all have to rant every now and then, makes our day better.

    I hope the talk with the vet gets ya'll a plan as to what to do. Hopefully Little Mister Barney can live out his days a happy kitty, and your children can live in peace with him without getting scratched up. Good luck to you :-D
    --Becky--
    ?.? Normals, 1.0 100% Het Pied Classic Jungle, 1.0 Yellow Hypo, 0.1 100% Het Butterscotch Hypo, 0.1 100% Het VPI Hypo, 0.1 100% Het Yellow Hypo, 1.0 Enchi, 1.1 Yellowbellies, 0.1 YB Granite, 1.0 Black Pastel, 1.0 Lemon Pastel, 0.1 50% Possible Het Banded Albino, 0.1 Spider, 1.0 Fire, 0.2 Granite

  6. #6
    BPnet Veteran frankykeno's Avatar
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    Re: Need Advice re elderly cat

    Hey no problem Becky rant away! Sorry to hear about the dog issues tho. It's something that drives me nuts too. Breeding animals with unstable temperments is just a recipe for disaster as far as I'm concerned but so many do, especially dog breeders, if the animal has the right "look" then who cares if it's as mean as can be or stupid as a rock or has hips that won't support it to adulthood. Sad what they have done to some great breeds.

    As far as anything on Barney's claws it would be a no go. I have to have Mike hold him while I trim his claws as he hates his paws messed with. My female would just roll on her back and let me snip away happily but then I'd had her from a kitten and had always done her claws so she was used to it.

    We'll manage old Barney as best we can I guess. Heck when I'm old and cantankerous I hope someone will put up with me LOL. I'm just very concerned about the risks with him around our youngest so am trying to be responsible as a parent and a pet owner.
    ~~Joanna~~

  7. #7
    BPnet Veteran Jeanne's Avatar
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    Re: Need Advice re elderly cat

    OK, a thought...

    I know that some vet offices offer getting these cap things glued onto the cats nails. They have to be replaced at some point, not sure how often.. and someone once told me that you can buy them at pet smart too; and you have to apply them. Though I am not sure how true that is. At least that would stop the cat from being able to scratch everyone to pieces. I think that this is due to age. Unfortunately, there may come a time you have to make the decision on euthanising this cat for his good and the good of your children. I have have had many animals over the years, and a few times have had to have old cats euthanised due to the same things you are experiencing.
    *Jeanne*

    "To acquire knowledge, one must study; but to acquire wisdom, one must observe"

  8. #8
    BPnet Veteran SatanicIntention's Avatar
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    Re: Need Advice re elderly cat

    Yeah, I mentioned that, but I believe she said that her husband has to hold the cat down for her just to be able to clip his nails.

    I don't know, maybe the vet could sedate the cat slightly and put them on for you. But that might be more trouble than it's worth consider the kitty's age. Wouldn't want him to have any adverse reactions.

    About the "old and cantankerous", my mom says that too, LoL.
    --Becky--
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  9. #9
    BPnet Veteran frankykeno's Avatar
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    Re: Need Advice re elderly cat

    Thanks again for the replies. As far as any kind of sedative for Barney I forgot to mention that issue (gawd this cat has em LOL). Barney can't be sedated lightly. He hates being in a moving vehicle and the two times we've moved and had the vet give us meds to lightly dope him (sorry can't remember the name this early in the a.m.) he's reacted exactly opposite to the med. Instead of being laid back and quiet, he became crazy. Chewed his way out of a cardboard cat carrier we were using and bite my ex (smart cat really LOL).

    Thank goodness Barney was neutered when we got him and the only two major medical issues he's ever had the vet techs put on big leather gauntlet gloves and wouldn't let me in the room (I should laff about this but Barney is a ripper really).

    Pls don't get the impression Barney's wild or mean tempered. He's just never reacted to meds well and is a bit of an oddball but he's always been trustworthy until this last month. I know it's probably senility as I just fed him and he's wandering around right now hollering his food cry and checking his bowl. Our old female cat did a bit of this when she was 18 so maybe it's just an old cat thing (tho she never been aggressive).

    I know that the final trip to the vet is approaching quicker than I'd like and I do appreciate your thoughts.
    ~~Joanna~~

  10. #10
    BPnet Veteran Ginevive's Avatar
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    Re: Need Advice re elderly cat

    Ah, cats. I love mine to death, so I know how it is to have them.
    My mom's female cat was euthanized about a month ago. She was over 17 years old, and she had a bunch of problems including kidney failure and senility. You would feed her and watch her eat, and ten minutes later she would be yowling by her food dish, forgetting that she ate? Then she started peeing blood in odd places around the house. My mom figured it was time to put her down when that happened, and she was also finding it hard to jump off of things and land on her feet.
    It was really sad to watch all this. It was tough to let Charcole go, and I know hiw that is. I guess you just know when it is time.
    Your cat sounds like he has def. gone through a radical personality change! It must be pretty stressful for you. But I think that if he is otherwise healthy, he probably has many good years left. The suggestions I had were already mentioned so all I can really do is wish you luck.
    -Jen. Back in the hobby after a hiatus!
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